In the very center of Moscow, not far from the place where Peter and Paul Lane intersects with Yauzsky Boulevard, the Peter and Paul Temple - Serbian Compound in Moscow is located. Unlike many other Moscow churches, it never closed: from the time of its construction to the present, and even in Soviet times. During the years of persecution of the church, the temple was a shelter not only for the clergy, but also for the famous shrines that were transferred here for preservation.
Story
The Serbian compound was supposed to open in the Temple of Peter and Paul back in 1948, but then political events prevented this: there was a break in Soviet-Yugoslav relations. Citizens of the USSR were forbidden to be in Yugoslavia, and Yugoslav - in the Union. The agreement of Patriarch Alexy I and Patriarch of Serbia Gabriel (Dozhich) to open the Serbian Compound had to be postponed.
And only in 1999 Alexy II, His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, signed a decree on the transformation of the Church of Peter and Paul into the Patriarchal Compound, in which a representative office of the Serbian Orthodox Church was opened in 2001.
Rector of Serbian Compound
In October 2002, Archimandrite Anthony (Pantelich), representing the Serbian Orthodox Church under the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, was rector of the Temple of Peter and Paul.
He was born in the city of Valevo on 07/23/1970. He received monastic tonsure while studying in 1988 at the Theological Church of the Three Saints. In 1995 he graduated with honors from the Theological Academy in Moscow. In 2006, in Belgrade, he was elevated to the rank of Bishop of Moravic. He is a member of various scientific conferences and television theological discussions. In 2008 he became a doctor of theological sciences. He writes articles and books of theological content. He was awarded several high church awards for outstanding services. Bishop Anthony still serves in Moscow.
Temple life today
For several years, parishioners, led by the head priest, restored and improved the church, opened a Sunday school for Serbian and Russian children, created a church choir, and rendered all possible assistance to the Serbs who found themselves in a difficult situation. Particular support is given to students from Serbia who study in theological schools of Russia.
Divine services in Serbian Compound are held every day, a solemn meal - on major patronal holidays.
There are also unique shrines here. The Bogolyubsky icon of the Mother of God is her revered list of the 18th century. This image is miraculous, before him many people were healed of the plague. Parishioners brought it to the Temple of Peter and Paul in the 30s, when they began to demolish the Kitay-Gorod wall, where it was located.
During the existence of the Compound, many particles of relics and images of saints revered in Serbia appeared here. For example, the miraculous image of St. Simeon Myrrh-streaming from the monastery of Hilandar with a particle of the vine, helping childless spouses give birth to a child.
Today, the Serbian Compound in Moscow is an established Russian-Serbian community where two Orthodox traditions, the Serbian and Russian people, draw together, enrich and complement each other.